Prince James Francis Edward Stuart was the son of the exiled King James II and VII. On the death of his father in 1701 he was proclaimed King by his Jacobite supporters but attempts at regaining the thrones of England and Scotland failed. After the unsuccessful invasion of 1715 James was forced to live in Avignon, which was then Papal territory, until the pope offered him refuge in Rome, where he lived until his death. This painting is a copy of a portrait by Martin van Meytens, made in Rome as one of a pair ? the other being of James?s wife Maria Clementina. Painted after the birth of their second son Henry, they were mutual presents, each to be hung in the other?s private rooms. Several copies of these works were produced to be given as presents to Jacobite supporters.
E. Gill (English, died 1749)
This elusive artist, known only as E.Gill, was probably an Englishman living in Rome during the 1720s. In 1727 he was commissioned to produce two, and later sixteen more copies of official portraits of Prince James Francis Edward Stewart and his wife, Maria Clementina. The following year, however, Gill was ordered to abandon the project as his work was considered of insufficient quality. By that time he had already made twelve copies altogether, some of which still survive
Martin van Meytens the Younger (Swedish / Netherlandish, 1695 - 1770)
Martin van Meytens was born in Stockholm in 1695, the son of a Dutch portraitist of who had moved to Sweden to work for the prosperous Swedish court of Charles XI. Van Meytens first trained with his father before going abroad to continue his studies. He began his career as a miniaturist in London in 1714, then moved to France where he gained access to the highest circles of Parisian society. From 1723 until 1727 Van Meytens lived in Italy, but by 1732 he was working in Vienna as official court painter. During his time at court he painted no less than fifteen portraits of the Empress Maria Theresa. His meticulous style ? much loved during his lifetime but out of fashion soon after his death ? contains French, English and Dutch influences.
